How to Order Coffee in Buenos Aires: Drinks and Useful Phrases

Last Updated on September 24, 2026 by Alan Seabright

The easiest way to order coffee in Buenos Aires is to name the drink, add the size if it matters, and finish with por favor. Two equally useful orders to remember are Un cortado en jarrito, por favor and Un café con leche, por favor. The first is a smaller, stronger coffee with a little milk; the second is a larger, milkier drink.

Traditional cafés and modern specialty coffee shops do not always use exactly the same cups or recipes, so treat the names below as a practical guide rather than a set of rigid measurements. If in doubt, describe how much coffee and milk you want.

The five coffee orders most visitors need

• Un café: a small espresso. This is the standard short black coffee in a traditional café.
• Un cortado: espresso “cut” with a small amount of warm or steamed milk.
• Una lágrima: mostly warm milk with just a small amount of coffee. The name means “a tear” of coffee.
• Un café con leche: coffee with plenty of milk, usually served in a larger cup. It is roughly comparable to a latte as a visitor’s point of reference, but it is not quite the same drink: the proportions, cup size and milk texture vary by café.
• Un americano: espresso lengthened with hot water. It is the closest choice to a longer black coffee, although strength and size vary.

[Photo credit: WallyG’s Flickr account//CC BY-NC-ND 2.0]

Sizes and variations you will see on the menu

In a traditional café, un café normally comes in a small espresso cup. Ask for un doble if you want a double espresso. A jarrito is a small mug, so un cortado en jarrito gives you a longer cortado with more room for milk. Cup sizes are not identical everywhere, and many modern coffee shops use their own menu and sizing system.

• Un café doble: a double espresso.
• Un cortado en jarrito: espresso with a little milk in a small mug.
• Un capuchino or cappuccino: espresso, milk and foam. Presentation and extras such as cinnamon or chocolate vary.
• Un café con crema: espresso topped with cream. This is less universal, so check the menu.
• Un submarino: not coffee, but a traditional hot chocolate made by melting a bar or piece of chocolate into hot milk.

For decaf, ask for descafeinado. For example: ¿Tenés café descafeinado? Availability varies, particularly in smaller traditional cafés.

Useful Spanish phrases for ordering coffee

• Un café, por favor. One espresso, please.
• Para mí, un café con leche. A café con leche for me.
• Un cortado en jarrito, por favor. A cortado in a small mug, please.
• ¿Tenés leche vegetal? Do you have plant-based milk?
• Sin azúcar. Without sugar.
• Para llevar. To take away.
• La cuenta, por favor. The bill, please.

Tenés is the local vos form of “you have.” Standard Spanish will also be understood, so visitors do not need to master Argentine grammar before ordering. A simple drink name followed by por favor is enough. Our guide to useful Argentine Spanish phrases explains more of the language you will hear around the city.

Merienda: the late-afternoon café ritual

La merienda is a late-afternoon snack between lunch and Argentina’s characteristically late dinner. A classic café order might combine coffee with medialunas, toast, cake or a sandwich. Many traditional cafés advertise set merienda combinations.

Medialunas are small crescent-shaped pastries. Medialunas de manteca are made with butter and tend to be sweeter and softer; medialunas de grasa are usually a little crisper and more savory. Either makes a very Buenos Aires companion to a cortado or café con leche.

Traditional cafés and modern specialty coffee

Buenos Aires now has two café experiences worth trying. Traditional neighborhood bars are places to sit, talk, read and linger over a familiar order. Modern specialty shops focus more on beans, preparation methods and drinks such as flat whites or filter coffee. Neither is the “correct” experience; they serve different moods.

The city also officially recognizes historic establishments as bares notables because of their cultural, architectural or neighborhood importance. The coffee is only part of the reason to visit. Café La Poesía in San Telmo and Café Margot in Boedo are two places to begin exploring that tradition.

How café service works

In a traditional table-service café, take a seat and order from the waiter. You are not normally expected to leave as soon as the cup is empty, and the bill may not arrive until you request it. Say La cuenta, por favor when you are ready. At smaller specialty shops, look to see whether customers order at the counter.

Payment practices change more quickly than coffee vocabulary. Cards are widely useful, but carrying some pesos remains sensible for small purchases and tips. See our current guide to money, cards and exchange rates in Argentina rather than relying on old cash advice.

Two easy orders to remember

Un cortado en jarrito y dos medialunas, por favor.

Un café con leche y dos medialunas, por favor.

Choose the cortado if you want a smaller, stronger coffee with a little milk, or the café con leche if you want a larger, milkier drink. Either order asks for two medialunas alongside it. Then sit back and enjoy one of the city’s most enduring everyday rituals.

If you would like more help understanding how Buenos Aires fits together, compare the small-group Buenos Aires Essentials Tour options.

• Category: Buenos Aires